Hall of Fame
Position: Halfback
Years: 1956-1959
Place of Birth: Elgin, ND
Date of Birth: Dec 21, 1935
Jersey Number: 22
Height: 5-11
Weight: 180
High School: Hayti, SD (Hayti HS)
Known as the Zoomer or the Hayti Hurricane, Garney Henley was one of the greatest athletes to ever come out of the state of South Dakota. In Sports Illustrated's recent listing, he was ranked as the third greatest South Dakota Sports Figure of the 20th century. Henley began play at Huron having never played or even witnessed a football game! He came to the school on a basketball and track scholarship. With his great speed, the Huron coach asked that he come out for football. In his first conference game, Henley ran back the opening kickoff for a touchdown. That first season he made the All-Conference team. In the winter, he played basketball and in the spring ran track. As a junior, Henley was selected to the NAIA All-America third team and became a first team player as a senior. He set NAIA career records with 394 points scored and over 4,000 yards rushing. In one game he scored five touchdowns. In other sports he was an all-conference basketball player and won five firsts in the conference track meet. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers and played 16 seasons in the Canadian Football League and was inducted into the CFL Hall of Fame. Always near athletics, he has served as a head basketball coach, CFL coach and general manager and director of Athletics at his alma mater.
